Special truck for cement blocks



Marh 9 1926.

1,575,863 D. OTTAVlANl SFECIAL TRUCK FOR CEMENT BLOCKS Filed Oct. 21,1924 INVENTOR Patented Mar. 9, man

UNITE STATES DOMENICO OTTAVIANI, OEBROOKLYN, NEW YORK;

srnorar. savor; roe CEMENT BLOCKS.

Application filed October 21, 1924. Serial No. 745,017. I

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, DOMENICO OrTAviANI, a citizen of the United Statesof America, residing at the borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings, cityand State of New York, have invented. a new and useful Special Truck forCement Blocks, of which the following is a specification.

Blocks molded of sand and cement are customarily supported on platenswhile they are allowed to set or harden. These blocks are ordinarilymoved by t vo men using tongs as the blocks have to, be handled verycarefully. In order to permit one man to handle a block I have devised aspecial truck by means of which a single person can very-readily pick upa block on its platen and move it from place to place with ease.

This truck has a frame provided with a.

wheel for supporting it and two long arms adapted to be readily insertedbeneath the platen on which the block is temporarily supported.

Fig. l is a side view of one fo m of truck embodying the improvements ofmy invention, showing it in position to lift a block.

Fig. 2' is a plan view of the truck of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 shows a block supported on a platen.

Fig. 4; is an enlarged sectional view of a detail.

Fig. 5 is a plan view showing a modified frame construction.

The frame consists of side bars 6, 6 connected together by a number ofcross bars such as 7, 8 and 9 and is supported by a wheel 10. The crossbars may be secured in the side bars for instance by means of inortiseand tenon joints such as 11 and reinforced by bolts such as 12. Thewheel 10 may conveniently be mounted upon a bolt 13 which extendsthrough the side bars and through the hub of the wheel. For reinforcingthe side bars I may provide U shaped hangers 1a.

The arms 15 which project from the front of the frame are preferablyintegral with reinforcing bars 16 and are preferably of metal and may bebolted to the side bars 6, 6 by means of bolts or screws such as 17, Aback plate is is w nted on the rear ends of at; arms it and maysupported by brackets or side plates 19 secured to the back of the plate18 and to the sides of the bars 6, 6 in any suitable manner.

Supporting legs such as 20 may be provided if desired with braces 21 anda rein forcing cross rod 22 if necessary.

The cement block 23 as above mentioned is usually temporarily supportedon a platen 2 usually formed of wood and provided with cleats 25 on thebottom which extend parallel to each other and reinforce the platen andserve to support it elevated a slight distance above the ground. Inorder to pick up a block before it has hardened it is necessary toengage the platen instead of the block. I therefore proportion andposition the parts so that the arms 15 can be readily inserted beneaththe platen 24 and alongside of the cleats 2b. The thickness of the armsshould therefore be somewhat less than the thickness of the cleats andthe spacing apart of the arms 15 is preferably somewhat less than thespace between the cleats or somewhat greater so that the same truck canbe used to pick up different sizes of blocks. When the arms 15 have beeninserted beneath the platen the nandle end of the frame can be tilteddown so as to lift the block from the ground. The block is thensupported by the platen and by the plate 18 so that the platen and platereinforce and support the block and prevent it from being injured whilethe truck is being wheeled around from place to place.

The form of construction shown with a single wheel is preferred to a twoWheel truck since it is much easier to handle and insert the armsbeneath the platen particularly on uneven ground. A single wheel truckis also preferable in many cases since on rough ground it is easier tofind a suitable trackway or path over which the truck can be wheeledwithout unnecessary jolting which would tend to crack or injure theuncured block.

It should be understood, however, that modifications of details can bemade within the scope of the claim without departing from the spirit ofmy invention. For instance in Fig. 5 I have shown a modification inwhich the handle ends of the side bars 6 are spread apart that the can10 Wheel on said shaft midway between said bars SPdCQClfiIPRTlL pick-upextensions so cured to said side bars and extending for- Wardlytherefrom at an obtuse angle, brackets secured to said side bars andextending upwardly and forwardly therefrom, and a back plate secured tosaid brackets at rightangles to said extensions and in front of saidWheel.-

L DOMENICO OTTAVIANI.

